Tennessee basketball returns to the court Sunday night for a preseason exhibition game against Duke in Knoxville. It’s our game look at the 2025-26 Tennessee basketball game even if it is just an exhibition game.
Here’s how to watch and more details to know about the top 25 exhibition showdown.
More From RTI: Who Tennessee Basketball Is Hosting On Official Visits For Duke Exhibition Game
How to Watch — No. 18 Tennessee (0-0, 0-0 SEC) vs. No. 6 Duke (0-0, 0-0 ACC)
- Start Time: 7 p.m. ET/6 p.m. CT
- Location: Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center
- Watch: ESPN2. PxP: Tom Hart, CC: Jimmy Dykes
- Online Streaming: Watch ESPN
- Radio (Knoxville): The Vol Network/The Vol Network App
- Vol Network radio crew: PxP: Mike Keith, CC: John Wilkerson
Probable Starters
Tennessee (via UT Game Notes)
Duke (via Duke Game Notes)
How They Fared Last Season
Tennessee:
- 30-8 (12-6 SEC) record
- Elite Eight appearance
- Season ended with loss against Houston
Duke:
- 35-4 (19-1 ACC) record
- Final Four appearance
- Season ended with loss against Houston
Where They Land In Preseason Rankings
Tennessee:
- AP Poll: No. 18
- Coaches Poll: No. 17
- KenPom: No. 9
- Bart Torvik: No. 13
- EvanMiya: No. 15
Duke:
- AP Poll: No. 6
- Coaches Poll: No. 5
- KenPom: No. 7
- Bart Torvik: No. 2
- EvanMiya: No. 3
State Leaders (Last Season)
Tennessee:
Points: Ja’Kobi Gillespie (Maryland) — 14.7 PPG, 45.3 FG%, 40.7 3PT%
Rebounds: Felix Okpara — 6.4 RPG
Assists: Ja’Kobi Gillespie (Maryland) — 4.8 APG, 1.9 TOPG, 31.6 MPG
Duke:
Points: Isaiah Evans — 6.8 PPG, 43.2 FG%, 41.8 3PT%
Rebounds: Maliq Brown — 3.7 RPG
Assists: Caleb Foster — 1.4 APG, 0.8 TOPG, 14 MPG
Prediction
We get a first game look at Tennessee basketball in an exhibition matchup against a Duke team that again projects as one of the nation’s best teams. A good reminder ahead of the game— exhibition games are often liars.
There’s countless results of exhibition games going one way and the two teams seasons going in completely opposite directions. My favorite is two years ago when Arkansas beat Purdue. The Razorbacks missed the NCAA Tournament and Purdue made the national championship game. Or last year when Indiana beat Tennessee. The Hoosiers missed the tournament and Tennessee made the Elite Eight.
But this will still be a fun game where we learn some stuff about Tennessee. The Vols will play a lot of players in this game but the matchup pairings should be interesting.
This game could really go either way. But I’ll side with Tennessee at home with a more veteran team.
Tennessee 91, Duke 85
